A regional court in the Russian Far East has ruled that Seventh-day Adventist Church member Sergei Panchenko should be allowed to do alternative service rather than be forced to bear arms, against his religious beliefs, in the Russian army.
A regional court in the Russian Far East has ruled that Seventh-day Adventist Church member Sergei Panchenko should be allowed to do alternative service rather than be forced to bear arms, against his religious beliefs, in the Russian army.
Panchenko, 18, petitioned for an alternative assignment when he was called to the army late last year. Most Russian males are required to serve one or two years in the military, but a law passed in 2002 states that alternative service must be allowed for those who can demonstrate genuine pacifist convictions.
The military registration commission in Tambov, Amur Region, initially denied Panchenko’s request, saying that no options for alternative service will be available until the new law officially takes effect Jan. 1, 2004. Panchenko was subsequently ordered to enter the army’s railroad division. After he appealed the order, citing his religious belief against killing, prosecutors opened a criminal case against him.
“The military and the court said they hoped to make an example of Panchenko,” says Valery Ivanov, director of communication for the Adventist Church in the Euro-Asia region. “Instead, this young man showed that, without any doubt, he is a sincere Christian who cannot violate his conscience by carrying weapons. Both the court and the military representatives agreed that his convictions were genuine.”
Panchenko was defended by lawyers from the Moscow-based Slavic Legal Center, an interfaith organization founded in 1992 to help safeguard the rights of religious believers in Russia and surrounding countries.
Although the new law on alternative service has not yet taken effect, the lawyers successfully argued Panchenko’s case on the basis of Article 59 of the 1993 Russian constitution, which also guarantees pacifist conscripts the right to substitute civil service for army service. This constitutional right has often been ignored during the past decade, and many conscientious objectors have been jailed or subjected to cruel hazing during their military service.
“The Adventist Church is extremely grateful for the expertise of the Slavic Legal Center,” says Ivanov. “These lawyers, who happened to be a Baptist and a Pentecostal, flew nine hours to the other side of Russia to protect the rights of an 18-year-old Adventist. This case has inspired our church to believe that the legal system and constitution can work to protect devout Russian believers.”
Adventist members in Russia have consistently objected to many aspects of army service, such as bearing arms, killing, taking an oath of allegiance to the military, and performing nonessential duties on Saturday, their day of worship. While the Russian army sometimes assigns conscientious objectors to noncombatant duties, the right not to carry weapons is rarely guaranteed.
Because the logistics of the alternative service program have not been finalized, Panchenko will most likely have to wait until next year to begin his civilian assignment, says Viktor Krushenitsky, director of public affairs and religious liberty for the church in Euro-Asia. Duties may include working at fire departments, hospitals or disaster sites. Young men who are approved for alternative assignments will probably be required to serve one or two years longer than those who enter the army.
